History

The Town of Milton, first settled in 1634, was most likely named after the Town of Milton, which formerly existed in Dorset County, England. 

In 1634 Agricultural trade in barley, rye and Indian corn lead to permanent settlement in Milton. Then Milton was incorporated as a town in 1662. By 1674 a powder mill, thought to be the earliest in the colonies, took advantage of the town’s valuable water power.
 
New England’s first chocolate factory, Baker Chocolate, opened in Lower Mills in 1764. Baker Chocolate is still a popular and quality made product, though now produced out of town, and every year the Milton Art Museum, on Edge Hill Road, has an extensive exhibit of Baker Chocolate memorabilia, dating back to 1764.
 An iron slitting mill and paper and saw mills were also opened in the 18th century.
 
The Suffolk Resolves House, located on Canton Avenue, made history in 1774 when a group of colonists composed one of the first formal lists of grievances against the King of England.
 
The Captain Robert Bennett Forbes House (right), designed by Isaiah Rogers in 1883 for China trade merchant and philanthropist Robert Bennett Forbes, is restored to its Victorian glory. The museum houses American, European and Chinese gems, which visitors learn about during scheduled tours.